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Giroud: Sub role upsets me; chat with Wenger hasn’t helped

Olivier Giroud has admitted spending time on the Arsenal bench this season has left him “hurt and disappointed”.

The French striker has lost his place in the side to Alexis Sanchez who has been moved into a central striking role, with Giroud starting just once – against Ludogorets in the Champions League.

Giroud’s season has rarely threatened to get going after the extended break given to him by manager Arsene Wenger following his exploits with France this summer and the striker admits he was particularly upset at being left on the bench against PSG for a game in which he eventually picked up both a red card and a toe injury.

“The coach has given me a month of complete holiday, as with Lolo (Laurent Koscielny). They have the need to offer a real break to the players who went far in the competition in the years of the Euros or World Cup,” Giroud told L’Equipe and translated by Sport Witness.

“I had wanted to play again quickly, but he really insisted that I take my time telling me that some players returned to their best level in November.

“I thought I would start (against PSG) because the coach had put me on the bench against Southampton, three days before. But no.

“It is in that moment, on the morning of the match in Paris, that I had a discussion with him. He said that I was close to returning. Frankly, I was hurt, disappointed.

“This match was finally terrible because I hurt my foot after two minutes of a start, and I couldn’t get in my stride. And I am then sent off.

“The following week, against Chelsea, I take my first ball and the pain returns immediately. A month and a half of absence on arrival…

“If my game time continues to stagnate, it will affect my future selection (for France). I cannot play one game in five. After, we must not make the audit in early November. And my future, I see it at Arsenal for two or three years I hope.”